


Coffee and Subways

by saddendays



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Background Relationships, Fluff and Angst, Multi, mostly short drabbles, some of them were supposed to be part of bigger fics but they remain unfinished
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-14
Updated: 2018-10-13
Packaged: 2019-04-22 17:38:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 15
Words: 9,919
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14313789
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/saddendays/pseuds/saddendays
Summary: some xiuho ficlets that i never thought would see the light of day.





	1. It's Our Tenth Year and You Aren't Here

**Author's Note:**

> none of these aus are connected unless i say otherwise!! as i said most of these are unfinished and will probably stay that way forever. also note that since i never actually expected to publish them anyway they're all!! unbetaed!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

_“To My Favourite Person,”_ it said. Junmyeon had never been the type to say ‘my love’ or ‘my boyfriend’—it was always Minseok labelling him as that. Junmyeon likes the lesser used names, claiming that it sounded cooler. The elder simply rolled his eyes and went along with it the day he said that.

 

He flips the letter open and chuckles at the characteristic messy handwriting of the sender. It was a miracle that he even managed to keep the text aligned. He might have put a lined paper underneath it. Minseok sighs, but smiles thereafter, remembering how he always messes up their shared bedroom, even in the span of less than eight hours. But Junmyeon was the only person in the entire world he would never kill after dropping his special sweater onto the floor.

 

(He was the one who gave it, after all.)

 

_“It’d be like, our tenth anniversary when you get this?”_ Minseok quirks an eyebrow. Junmyeon really thought ahead. _“I know I always commented that I’ll never last a week with your clean freak tendencies in the same house, but I feel like I wouldn’t survive a day without you.”_

 

Cheesy. So cheesy and Minseok finally lets himself drop a tear onto the letter, right above _without you._ Junmyeon had always been the romanticist between the two of them, daydreaming about adventures and getaways that, although they can afford, the younger would always pussy out before they actually plan it. 

 

_“I’d honestly spend the rest of my days cleaning and making your stingy ass morning coffee rather than live it as messily and coffee-less as I like—but without you. It’d be a lot better though if I can be messy and not make you coffee but with you still around.”_ Minseok laughs, because that’s exactly what kind of lifestyle Junmyeon has with him. He was a lot stricter with his boyfriend’s cleanliness a long time ago, but he guesses he just got used to it. He even makes his own coffee because of the younger’s constant whining over it. _“Will you even let me live with you?”_

 

_“Whatever, of course you will.”_ Chuckle. _“Because you love me. I love you too.”_


	2. Seen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Baekhyun drags Chanyeol to see their creation god.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> gods au and also pcy centric!! baekyeol sort of

It was an all too regular morning when I encountered the most unforgettable sight of my life.

 

I had been reading in the comfort of my own parent’s living room until a certain neighbour of mine had wanted to interrupt. Byun Baekhyun was a bright young man, eyes sparkling with some sort of mischief each time I see him, shenanigans or not. His body language was enigmatic, hard to guess if he were going to play a prank on you or if he were just simply passing by to say his hellos. But that morning, he had not been joking at all when he said,

 

“I think I saw the most beautiful person in the world.”

 

At first, I stared at my childhood friend in utter disbelief, eyes scrunched and mouth pulled to a small frown. But Baekhyun had only stared at me with a serious stare—he wasn’t kidding. Unknowingly, my feet had moved and we were leaving my home faster than Baekhyun had come in.

 

Our forest was always said to be a magical place, said to be the residence of Lu Han, the god of nature. His safe haven whenever he wasn’t with the god of war, Sehun, his husband. Superstitions say that the forest is extra lively when he’s there. If that were true, then he must have been around when Baekhyun and I had entered the forest. The sky looked more vivid, birds soaring through the clear blue heavens, a sight you would only imagine happening in a work of literature. The trees swayed with a little bounce in them, as if they were in some state of joy. The quiet chirps of the birds floated around like an orchestra playing its instruments in a low, beautiful harmony. 

 

Before I knew it my best friend had stopped walking, grip on my wrist softening as he comes to a complete stop. He said we were there, pointing to a small pathway leading to a groove. It had been odd that my heart stuttered in nervousness, as if meeting the so-called beautiful person was going to be a life or death situation. With a little pat on my back he urged me to walk in and look.

 

But before I had the chance to dive straight in, he warned, “Don’t let him see you.”

 

I had been slightly perturbed by that warning, not really knowing why. My stomach felt lighter and my head was swirling. It felt as if I was being let into one of the biggest secrets of this forest. My hands fidgeted as I walked through the sparse plant life along the pathway. It seemed to grow thicker and thicker the closer I approach, more white and gold flowers appearing as I enter deeper.

 

Then I saw him.

 

His eyes gleamed with a white-blue hue, complementing his unblemished, pale skin. His face was sculpted perfectly, featuring nothing but gentleness and grace. Brown locks framed his visage, looking softer than the best of his pillows back at home. He wore some sort of white dress, not having a clear form or shape and seeming to fade as it goes down his legs. He crossed his legs as he sat on a relatively large stone, eyes bored as he stares quietly at the plants below him. It seemed to be growing around him, encaging one of his feet in an eruption of the same white and gold flowers I had been trudging through before I got there, except they were taller, reaching until halfway up his ankles while the ones I saw barely reached past the base of my own.

 

Had I not been so enamoured by his beauty I would’ve realized that my eyes have been set on the god of creation, Junmyeon.

 

Books that had illustrated pictures of him didn’t compare to the real thing. It was only through the lyrical descriptions and actual accounts of him had I realized that he was the very god storybooks and folktales have been speaking about—with an unreal glow, perfect features, and life teeming around him. But even then, in my honest opinion, it still did not compare to the actual sight of him. I remembered one story where the author had said that they have fallen in love in first sight upon seeing the creation god in person. I hadn’t expected it to be true, but it was. 

 

Baekhyun had walked up to me as I ogled obliviously at the god. I almost screamed, much to my embarrassment, when he placed his hand on my shoulder, but knowing that Junmyeon could turn around after hearing such an unmanly voice and see that someone had been looking—watching him—kept my mouth shut. With a couple of whines and a pleading pout on my face I managed to persuade my friend to keep watching him along with me.

 

It was a boring sight, really, just watching someone stare blankly in one direction while playing around with his hands. But it was different if you were staring at the subject of numerous folktales, songs, and superstitions your whole life was revolving around. But Baekhyun had gotten bored, yawning and insisting we go before something bad happens, but I mostly blamed his poor eyesight for not completely seeing the extent of the beauty sitting before him. It was a miracle that he even caught sight of Junmyeon to begin with.

 

Something bad happened.

 

In a blink of an eye, there appeared another man. He was turned away from us, so I only managed to make out his neatly styled, jet black hair. He was wearing a black version of the dress Junmyeon had been wearing. His skin, at least from what he sees in his arms, neck and legs, were tanner than the man in white, but all the same possessing a much paler glow. I stared curiously as the grass and flowers around his feet wilted almost instantly. The dull, brown spot was a large contrast to the radiant colors surrounding it, almost appearing sad.

 

“You know,” the creation god’s voice was soft, barely louder than the passing breeze, but sweet like the sound of his friend’s voice each time he sang nursery rhymes and hymns to their gods. “I’ve been waiting for quite a bit. Look,” he pointed to the flowers growing around his feet, pout evident on his face. “The marigolds were getting impatient.”

 

The other raised a hand up to his mouth, as if trying to stifle a laugh. Junmyeon’s lips turned up less than a moment later, as if amused of his expression.

 

Baekhyun gaped, eyes wide and mouth hanging open. I turned to him, worried. “It’s—it’s Minseok.”

 

Minseok was the god of destruction, the subject of most children’s nightmares, including my own years back. With detailed descriptions of his empty, black eyes, said to be the chamber of the most disgusting of human souls, his mouth slightly upturned into a smile, said to represent his deceitful nature and his lying tongue. I was actually relieved not to have him turned towards our direction. 

 

“Sorry,” answered Minseok, hand reached out to his husband. His voice wasn’t as deep as I had expected—even mine was deeper—but it made me feel a ghost of a shiver go down my spine, almost scaring me for no particular reason. Even the plants had shied away after he spoke up, turning their attention away from the creation god. Junmyeon glanced at the other’s outstretched palm, before taking it in his own and using it as leverage to get on his feet. At this angle, they seemed to be the same height.

 

“Sehun brought me a ridiculous amount of souls today, it took me a bit of time to organize them.” The creation god had smiled at the explanation, praising him gently with a caress on the cheek. I wasn’t sure if it was an illusion of the light or not, but I swear I saw a hint of red on the apple of his husband’s cheeks. I’ve been told that gods are merely a reflection of human beings by a scholar who had passed by our village a few years back. That idea stuck to me, and I was astonished on how correct the notion was.

 

It had only occurred to me in that moment that both me and my friend had absolutely no idea why the two most revered gods in superstition were just…right there.

 

They definitely had wanted to meet up, but the context behind it was still blurry. Were they having a lover’s getaway? Were they going to release undeniable destruction onto humanity—wait no, Junmyeon’s favourite creations are humans. The first option was definitely more feasible. A moment passed and Baekhyun’s head started thumping against my bicep, a nervous habit of his whenever he has a feeling we’d be in danger. I turned to him, face laced with concern.

 

“I don’t want to die unmarried, Chanyeol,” he whined after settling his head on my arm. His voice was feeble, filled with fear, shaking.

 

I smiled at him when he raised his head up, resulting in a smack to the side of my head. I would’ve brought my hand up to cover my poor, hurt ear, but my the arm situated on that side of my body was still encaged in Baekhyun’s much smaller limbs, hands posing a tight grip on my forearm. “You’re insane! We could be stuck in Minseok’s eyes if he turns around and notices two random humans who aren’t even supposed to be watching them in the first place.”

 

“You’re just cute,” I answered, as if all the restrains in my mind and mouth had suddenly been removed. I wasn’t sure if I were turning red or not at the time, and the only thing I was sure of was the fact that Baekhyun was just as affected as I was from my statement. Glad to know that we were both in this together. It just stayed like that for a bit, with us completely ignoring whatever the creation and destruction god were doing, choosing to stare at each other’s unimpressive, brown eyes. 

 

It was then, on that not-so-regular morning, that I had seen the most beautiful sight of my life.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> junmyeon wanted to show minseok this little family of bunnies he saw


	3. The Three Musketeers, The Prince, And Lu Han

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Junmyeon works a regular job with not-so-regular circumstances.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> convenience store au bc somehow im into that

The line was long, as it always is at this time of noon, with only two employees both manning the counter and assisting the customers. The convenience store wasn’t particularly popular, not at all. It was just one of the many branches of a capitalist empire created by some old man who thought that selling overpriced items would be a good idea. The reason for the long line was because of the part-timer at the counter—Kim Junmyeon.

 

He’s one of the most popular seniors of his school, affectionately titled _Angel_ by many of the students and some faculty. He was his batch’s valedictorian, and also one of the most good-looking people in their high school, based on a survey they had at the beginning of the year. It was no wonder he was popular within the walls of the prestigious school. The almost unreasonable amount of students flocking in every one o’ clock noon even attracted regular adults, children, and some elderly to see what’s going on. Then they all laid their eyes on Junmyeon, and everything went uphill (or downhill) for that small store branch from there.

 

Lu Han, the branch manager and also the employee assisting the customers, was in charge of not letting Junmyeon get overwhelmed by the amount of people that enter every day. It all started with Yifan, his boss, instructing him to “make sure Junmyeon doesn’t die” when he learned that the boy was absolutely unaware of his popularity amongst the general population. That would’ve been a one way ticket to disaster.

 

Over the few months he had been working with the boy he learned of a particular few people who constantly try to grab his attention. Those people were the most annoying ones to deal with, but the ones who also give the store the most revenue from coming in and buying something every day without fail. It was a one-sided love-hate relationship.

 

The loudest one is Kim Jongdae, a sophomore a year under Junmyeon. He’s heard from Kyungsoo, a fellow employee and one of Junmyeon’s club mates, that Jongdae has been crushing on him since he was middle school and Junmyeon was a freshman. He’s tried to woo Junmyeon in a variety of strange, and most of all _noisy_ ways. One included exploding fireworks right outside the convenience store, which was a complete failure because the senior was sick that day and therefore did not get to witness it. But it was a good day for Lu Han, who managed to take multiple pictures of the student’s crying face. He uses it as blackmail whenever he gets too annoying.

 

The tallest one is Park Chanyeol, a classmate of his. They apparently used to be childhood friends, until Chanyeol had to move to another city because of his parents. He eventually returned and “realized that he was in love with Junmyeon.” Lu Han wonders if Chanyeol was a character straight out of a romantic comedy, except that he doesn’t get the main lead’s heart. He’d come to the store almost every single day to buy something romantic like a heart shaped chocolate, and just give it to the elder. What Chanyeol doesn’t know is that Junmyeon doesn’t really like sweets and those chocolates always end up with him. 

 

His favourite one is the dimple faced, Chinese angel Yixing. He was just a regular college student, that is until the day he bought a 250ml Coke Zero right on Junmyeon’s shift. It was never the same since then. What used to be shy, quiet greetings turned into endless stories of how amazing he was at this and that. He was obviously trying to impress the younger, which is oftentimes, just like Jongdae, a failure because one thing Lu Han has learned about Junmyeon over the year was that he doesn’t like arrogant people (Lu Han does, please date him instead). Asides from the last suitor of his. The shortest one, and the one that’s most likely to “win,” if Junmyeon’s heart were some sort of competition.

 

Kim Minseok.

 

“Afternoon,” Minseok greets, setting the bottle of cola and chocolates on the counter. Junmyeon gives him a small smile, eyes crinkling unlike the tired, practiced smile he gives other customers. His cheeks were pink as he scanned each item torturously slowly.

 

“You’re buying Coke today?” Minseok raises a brow, before nodding. Lu Han finds it ever so slightly creepy that Junmyeon indirectly revealed the fact that he memorized every combination of food Minseok buys whenever he comes to the store. He watches as Minseok teases Junmyeon over his flushed cheeks before a grumpy old lady taps his shoulder to ask him where the hell the laundry detergents were.

 

Junmyeon was in the middle of packing Minseok’s items into a paper bag when Minseok’s knuckles brushes against his. Both parties took notice of it, looking up into each other’s eyes. The younger was even redder than he was just a moment ago, realizing that what had just happened was basically how all drama leads fall in love, and the elder’s cheeky smile was still plastered on his face like nothing had happened. Junmyeon tries pulling away, but Minseok comes closer to intertwine their fingers. The high schooler looked like he was about to explode molten, red lava all over the place. 

 

“When does your shift end?” Junmyeon resists the urge to say right now and run away with his prince who has a white Ford instead of a horse and get fired. He glances at the clock—4:30—before answering that it ends in an hour. “Shall we get dinner together?”

 

That almost Shakespearean way of speaking has Junmyeon’s heart fluttering, blood rushing all over his body. All over his body.

 

Lu Han was only able to keep an eye on Junmyeon again after Minseok left. It was a bummer, since Junmyeon’s reactions whenever the college senior visits are always priceless. What he doesn’t know is that Minseok finally scored himself a date with the freshman—now senior—he’s been crushing on for three years. What he does know is that Jongdae, Chanyeol, and Yixing, all in one line, are whining altogether like a bunch of five year olds whose candy just got stolen.

 


	4. Dark Past

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Junmyeon has been talking to Jongdae way too much.

“You were a playboy?” Junmyeon’s voice lilts, disbelief written all over his face like the unreasonably large fonts on children’s books. Minseok laughs.

 

“I was,” he stops his laughter only to smile at his boyfriend, eyes twinkling. “Is there something wrong?”

 

“No, but,” he sucks in a breath. “I’ve been talking to Jongdae, and he said that your personality went a complete 360. You used to—um—“ Junmyeon looks down on his phone, scrolling through his conversation with the elder’s best friend. “—hook up with almost everyone, swear at least a hundred times a day, and drink all the booze you like. I never heard you say anything mildly vulgar, or drink any alcohol. What happened to you?”

 

Minseok internally cringes at the mention of how he was in the past, realizing that he actually somehow enjoys his new lifestyle better. Especially with Junmyeon by his side. “So do you want me to curse like a sailor, and get so drunk that I end up injuring myself?”

 

“What? No!” the younger turns red, hands fidgeting from nervousness. He chuckles at his boyfriend’s reaction and presses a soft kiss to his lips. He pulls away to see Junmyeon turn into some sort of human-tomato hybrid. “I’m just curious on why—why you changed, I guess.”

 

Minseok’s smile gets wider as he looks up at the ceiling thoughtfully, finger going up to his lips as if he were actually giving thought to his answer, although he already knew what he was going to say. Junmyeon stares curiously until his boyfriend looks back at him again, hand coming up to rest on his cheek. “I actually still swear. I say gosh darn it a lot,” he responds cheekily and Junmyeon pouts.

 

“No, seriously, I’m curious.”

 

Minseok sighs as he gives in. “Well, I don’t want those lovely ears of yours to hear anything vulgar coming out of my mouth,” he moves the hand placed on Junmyeon’s cheek to pinch the younger’s ears, causing a small chuckle to come out of his mouth. “And I want to be sober all the time so I won’t ever treat you like the slob I am when I’m drunk.”

 

Junmyeon smiles, the same way he did when Minseok first confessed to him, with his eyes crinkled and his smile spread wide across his face. The younger’s best friend, Baekhyun, had always told him that the smile was “so weirdly dad-like I don’t think you should use it on hot guys,” but Minseok thinks that it’s the cutest thing he’s ever seen. Not even his cat can be cuter than Junmyeon’s special smile.

 

“So you’re saying you became a gentleman because of me? Do I have that kind of power now?” It was Minseok’s turn to pout, but Junmyeon was quick to dissipate his childish annoyance with a peck to the lips, something he doesn’t usually initiate. It has little butterflies flying around the elder’s stomach, something he had to grow accustomed to with dating the boy. It ends with Minseok once again smiling at his boyfriend, and said boyfriend coming in for another cuddling session.

 

He could get used to this.

 


	5. Can I Be Your Boyfriend (Can I?)

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minseok thinks about Junmyeon's standards to being his boyfriend.

Minseok assumes it’s a requirement to be at least six feet tall to date Junmyeon. From what he’s heard of, all his three boyfriends throughout his high school life were taller than six feet, so it must be in his criteria to have insanely long legs. It sucks—really, really sucks because he can only dream to have legs as long as that basketball player Wu Yifan. It’s also a disadvantage that those three are still actively trying to win him back. Though, he guesses it might be easy to win against them if ever they had to fight a duel to the death. They’d be too tall to notice him, and Minseok will come out in one piece after they’ve all torn each other to shreds.

 

Junmyeon’s most recent ex, Park Chanyeol is the definition of stuck up K-Drama rich boy. What sucks even more is he’s in the student council, Vice President. As the President, Minseok sometimes has the urge to cut half of his legs off, or at least make him kneel down whenever they have to be stuck together. With said stuck up K-Drama rich boy attitude, he looks like a main lead, which in turn makes him look like the president instead of him. It’s always annoying when the (taller) school officials talk to him and he has to call their attention from ‘down there’ just to tell them that no, rich boy is not the president, I am.

 

But what’s most annoying about rich boy is literally everything related to Junmyeon. While they were still dating, he’d make the younger sit outside the council room during meetings, and Minseok always buys him some snacks to keep him company. He was always happy to see the younger’s grateful smile, even at the cost of his poor allowance. What would suck, however, is that Chanyeol would put up some kind of possessive aura around him whenever he sees the bottle of cola in Junmyeon’s hands. He always overhears the younger’s excuse of ‘I bought it myself,’ as if knowing that saying MInseok’s name would end in a death sentence. 

 

Now that they’ve broken up, for obvious reasons, Chanyeol would constantly mope about the elder as if he actually cared for him. That’s the main reason why Minseok hates him the most, really. At least Sehun and Yifan treated him well. Junmyeon also still had feelings for the lanky boy, blushing in the latter’s attempts to win his heart back. At least he was smart enough to reject it each time, knowing perfectly he deserves better. Like Minseok.

 

What he hates about his current situation is asides the fact that he meets almost zero of the assumed criteria, he is physically incapable of telling Junmyeon he likes him directly. He’s written at least three anonymous poems for the student newspaper regarding his despair. His moniker is Waisa. As in Why-Am-I-So-Awkward. Baekhyun had urged him multiple times in the past to make it JunmyeonLover69. The silver lining of submitting all of those is that Junmyeon has read all three of those poems, and he likes them a lot.

 

“Waisa’s so good,” Junmyeon hits his best friend, Kim Jongdae’s arm, trying to grab the younger’s attention. Minseok blushes after realizing he’s overheard them. “His muse is someone in our class! See, room 302, that’s our room. Oh my god, what if it’s me? I have brown hair and brown eyes.”

 

“Everyone’s eyes and hair are brown,” Jongdae sighs. “You’re so lovestruck with someone you don’t even know. You’re like that one girl who wanted to marry that guy after they finished each other’s sandwiches or something.”

 

“It’s not like I’ll jump on their dick right away,” Junmyeon scoffs. “I’ll get to know them.”

 

“How are you so sure it’s a guy?” Jongdae raises an eyebrow. “For all you know they can be a girl. You’re so mean, assuming things.”

 

Minseok winces after seeing Junmyeon hit Jongdae’s back so hard it made a resounding thump. “It says in his second poem about loving a man like him! A man!”

 

“Okay, Christ, I didn’t read any of those poems,” the two continue to argue thereafter. 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> if i finished this the summary would've been "Minseok thinks about Junmyeon's standards to being his boyfriend while not knowing he was one of them."


	6. It's Cooked to Perfection but I Still Want to Eat You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jongdae sends Junmyeon to have cooking lessons, but with his crush.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is literally just the conversation jongdae and junmyeon have , minseok doesnt appear at all

“Okay listen,” Junmyeon starts after taking the fork out of his mouth, pointing it towards the younger. “Fuck you.”

 

Jongdae laughs, face making that weird contortion that oftentimes spells out what-the-fuck-is-happening. As if he had no idea what he just did. “What went up your ass this time, dude?”

 

Junmyeon’s eyes narrow, frown more evident. He drops the fork onto his plate of cake, which in turn clanks annoyingly. A few people turn around to look, which freaks the elder out for a moment but he calms down after they turn away after seeing nothing wrong. “Don’t ‘dude’ me, you know what you did.”

 

His best friend’s normal, more decent smile returns, a contrast to the evil glint in his eye. Junmyeon only trusted that smile once in his life, when they first started out as friends in preschool. The boy, with only one front tooth, had lied to him that the new, shy Chinese transferee Yixing liked him, resulting in an embarrassing confession and a new friend. Weird that it ended up with Yixing and Jongdae dating instead.

 

“It’s not the end of the world, Junmyeon. It’s just cooking classes with _Minseok_ as your teacher,” Jongdae answers as if it wasn’t the end of the world.

 

“Say that again when I accidentally light him on fire,” he groans, burying his face into his hands, trying to hide the red spreading across his cheeks. It wasn’t helping that they were in a cafe that, although this isn’t where his crush works, reminds him of Minseok. Everything caffeine related reminds him of Minseok, really. Even an energy drink could get his heart beating.

 

Jongdae repeats his sentence in a high pitched, mocking tone before grabbing a spoonful (forkful) of Junmyeon’s cake. “I was about to say ‘so that means I’ll never say that’ but then I realize it really, really could happen, knowing you—“

 

Junmyeon hits him on the head with his fork. 

 


	7. Hold My Hand Like You Did Before

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> They meet again, when everything's settled down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is?? a very vague au???????? idek whats happening myself?? possibly the only actual sort of angst

Junmyeon was sitting under the moonlight, curled up into a small ball as the light bounced off his white clothing, as if they were glowing. Minseok stares, because that’s impossible. Junmyeon isn’t here. But those messy, brown locks, the curve and dips of his silhouette—the soft humming of that gentle voice. It can’t be him, but somehow it was.

 

He doesn’t realize he’s moving until the younger looks up, coffee brown eyes reflecting the moon right off of it. A smile creeps onto his lips, and he’s not sure if it’s delight, instinct, or if it’s just because it’s Junmyeon. He stopped humming, but somehow his pretty voice still lingers in his ears, beautiful in combination with the nature surrounding them.

 

“Sit,” his voice was barely audible, but the surprise of hearing him speak after such a long time made it feel like he was speaking right into his ear. Minseok drops down, and Junmyeon chuckles at the speed of it, patting his back. “How long has it been?”

 

Minseok looks up thoughtfully, a mix of grief and nostalgia running through his veins as he recalls the last time he saw the boy, when his smiles were more stiff and his voice was quiet not because he was being gentle—but because it hurt to speak, it hurt so much for him that he had to leave. Leave home. Leave Minseok.

 

“Three years?”

 

“Three years is always a sweet spot,” the younger is quick to comment, head resting on his knees and a content smile splayed on his lips. “Two years is too soon, four years is too long.”

 

Minseok hums in agreement. He feels a hand on his own, grass scraping against his palm but soft, smooth skin pressing lightly against its roof. “I’m real, you know. You look so—“ he pauses. “What’s the word?”

 

“Astonished?” he supplies, looking at the other’s eyes, as if asking for confirmation. Junmyeon’s eyes smile.

 

“Yeah, astonished,” he leans in to place his head on the elder’s shoulder, hair brushing against Minseok’s bare neck. Minseok turns his hand to intertwine his fingers with the younger, gripping it, wanting to make sure, be absolutely certain that Junmyeon was there, right there with him, _real._ “I missed you.”

 

“You always do.”

 

It comes as a silent agreement, with Junmyeon turning his head to Minseok, their eyes settling on one another’s, but then Minseok trails his down to the younger’s lips, suddenly feeling a lingering taste of sweetness in his mouth. Junmyeon closes his eyes, tilting his head, ready to accommodate. He looks perfect like this, with the moonlight reflecting off his pale skin, his lips pink and his dark eyelashes visible against the top of his cheek.

 

He kisses him, and the rest is history.

 


	8. McDonalds and Subways

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Junmyeon being mad over Minseok scolding him over Subway.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> based off this one airport picture where junmyeon was looking all mad and minseok just looked like a very tired but soft boyfriend

"Don't talk to me, you mainstream McLoser," Junmyeon pouts from under his mask, and Minseok only smiles in amusement and rolls his eyes from how cute his boyfriend is being.

 

"Is this what you're so worked up about?" Minseok comes closer, wrapping a protective arm around the younger, despite the cameras flashing and the fans itching to come closer to them. The other members throw them knowing glances, and Minseok smirks at them before they turn back around. He turns his attention back to Junmyeon. "You're being silly. I'm just worried about your health."

 

"No, you're not," Junmyeon looks at him, disdain in his eyes and Minseok couldn't help but laugh. "You just want me to convert to your stupid McDonalds obsession. You should be understanding in your partner's preferences. You're so mean."

 

Minseok almost kisses him, but pauses when he hears a few clicks of a camera. That's right, he's in public. He stops himself from appearing any more gay than he already was. 

 

But he swears, when they're alone, Minseok's going to kiss that frown off of his face.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> after kissing the frown off junmyeons face minseok buys him mcdonalds to annoy him


	9. It's A Little Late But It'll Do

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Six years later, but somehow they're still the same.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> divorce au!! sort of angsty but like there's practically none i guess

“Long time no see,” Minseok greets, sliding the younger a can of beer. Junmyeon takes it, opening the can with no regard if it spills everywhere, and taking a swig. “Still single?”

 

“You mean still divorced,” Junmyeon’s misery just radiates even more. “Stupid arranged marriage. Now everyone thinks I’m just some guy who can’t keep their spouse in check.”

 

Minseok nods sadly, remembering how he accidentally chased away some of the boyfriends and girlfriends he had with just a check in some legal papers. The two huff, clanking the two beers and chugging it down. “We could’ve filed for annulment. We’d be single in the documents.”

 

“Our parents would’ve killed us,” Junmyeon frowns. Minseok hums in agreement. “Do they even know?”

 

The elder shakes his head, and Junmyeon sighs in relief. Although they married for the sake of a generations old agreement, their parents have not checked up on their marriage since a month before their divorce. It’s been six years since, and their parents only call to ask if they’re doing fine. They have no idea. Junmyeon looks back up at the elder, a little flabbergasted on how different he was now. No longer was he a lanky teenager, with muscles that stretched under the thin fabric of his sweatshirt, eyes holding more experience than they had been the last time he saw them.

 

Minseok gives him a look, one he can’t decipher, with his eyes a little narrowed in thought and mouth pursed into a line. “Have you ever wondered,” he pauses, averting his eyes from the younger, “if we just stayed married and see what could happen, instead of just divorcing out of frustration. It would’ve been different, you know?”

 

Junmyeon’s a little confused, and he feels his chest clenching, somehow _agreeing_ to what Minseok had said. He imagines what it would’ve been like to grow up together, to spend their years as an unfortunately married couple. If they would get along, be friends, fall in love. It rings in Junmyeon’s mind for a while, the thought of them getting along better than they did before, hugging, _kissing,_ spending their lives together. He likes the idea. 

 

He likes Minseok.

 

“Yeah,” he says, watching as Minseok looks back at him with a little smile in his eyes. “It could’ve been different.”

 

The elder shrugs, but he was still smiling. “We were dumb, I guess. Any nineteen and twenty year old would be if they were suddenly forced into a marriage. Do you remember our honeymoon, when we both made a pact to divorce once our parents turn a blind eye?”

 

“You were speaking as if it were some plan to take over the entire world,” Junmyeon laughs, and Minseok follows after, remembering how he went on and on about it, pacing around the room as if he were some supervillain explaining his plans to his apprentice. Nineteen year old Junmyeon had watched in both amusement and awe, and it was only now, when Junmyeon had finally become twenty five, did he realize that he was just a dumb teenager in love.

 

“You were my partner in crime,” Minseok suddenly says, and Junmyeon’s heart stutters. “We could’ve taken over the world if we wanted to.”

 

_We can still do that now,_ he thinks, but he doesn’t say.

 

“Imagine everyone bowing down to us,” Junmyeon smiles at his thought. “The rulers of some dystopian society.”

 

“Our number one rule is that there’s no arranged marriage,” they laugh.

 

“That’s hypocrisy,” Junmyeon chuckles, happy that some of the tension was gone. “Their rulers were in an arranged marriage.”

 

Minseok glances up thoughtfully, realizing the flaw in his logic. But then he looks at Junmyeon again, a sweet smile on his face, and the younger turns red. The elder’s hand creeps up to his, resting on top of it, and Junmyeon lets it be, as if it was always supposed to be there. “I have an idea.”

 

“What is it?”

 

“We get married again, a normal, consenting marriage, so none of our citizens accuse us of it,” Minseok smiles at him, waiting if he’d joke along, agree, do something. Junmyeon can’t stop the dumb grin coming to his face, the idea of marrying Minseok somehow much more appealing than when it was first pitched to him. Then Minseok starts laughing, and Junmyeon admires how his smile is still as bright as it was before. “Why are we even talking about this? That would never happen.”

 

Junmyeon feels a little numb in the chest, smile faltering, but drunk and unwilling to believe the elder, he asks, “What would never happen?”

 

“Us ruling the world, of course. We can definitely get married again,” Minseok laughs, and suddenly Junmyeon feels like a teenager with their crush again, heart beating like crazy and eyes stuck on the object of his affections. 

 

“I’d like that.”

 


	10. In The Future, Just Like This

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After a long day of promoting, Junmyeon didn't expect to become five years older and five times richer.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this!! this is rushed

Junmyeon was positively freaking out.

 

There he was, standing in front of an unfamiliar mirror in an unfamiliar bathroom of an unfamiliar house. He assumes he wasn’t alone, seeing the numerous other rooms. He would’ve—could’ve assumed it was just their dorm, but the last time he checked, they lived in a small dingy apartment and roomed with Sehun. But here, _here,_ it was filled with luxury, expensive commodities, sleek, styled furniture. But somehow it was home.

 

He assumed it was simply a dream at first, but after pinching his arm several times in a row and doing a reality check, he’s very sure he wasn’t asleep. So now there were two possibilities. One, they were still in their old dorm and he went insane after living with eleven other people for so long, or two, he was kidnapped and the kidnapper was just really, really nice and rich.

 

In an attempt to calm himself down, he leans down into the sink, starting the water and washing his face. He knows there are some skincare products by the sink, but what if they aren’t his? He doesn’t want to anger whoever owns that. He guesses that just washing his face is enough for now.

 

But then suddenly there are a pair of arms around his waist, and he’s snapping back up out of shock. In the mirror, he sees a slightly taller man, head buried in his shoulder. He would’ve tried to push them away, but he sees how toned their arms are and feels how strong their grip is on him, and he doesn’t try.

 

“Good morning,” they say, voice hoarse, clear that they had just woken up. Their lips press against his neck, and Junmyeon shivers at the touch. “You woke up early today, babe.”

 

Babe? Babe. This was definitely a kidnapper. A male stalker. All the alarms set of in his head and he’s standing completely still, all tensed up and horrified. The other man must’ve felt how stiff he was, pulling away and turning the other around. Junmyeon is shocked to see that they had the same monolids, same plump cheeks, and smile as a member.

 

Could that be Minseok?

 

‘Minseok’ looks at him, confusion at how Junmyeon’s eyes are wide, lips trembling. 

 

“Are you okay, Junmyeon? You got thinner,” he pinches his soft waist, and the man’s confused as well. “Where did your abs go? Have you been eating too much Subway?”

 

Subway? He _hated_ Subway, and each and every member knows that. He starts screaming in his mind, but nothing comes out of his mouth, just a small, puny, “I have abs?”

 

‘Minseok’ casually pulls his shirt up, high enough for his pink nubs to almost be revealed and he’s turning red all over. He looks just as lost as he was at the white expanse of flat skin on his stomach. He looks back up at him, hand coming up to comb through his dark locks. Junmyeon reddens at the gesture, but Minseok just continues to do so as if it’s something completely natural. 

 

Suddenly ‘Minseok’ is chuckling a little awkwardly, a slight sprinkle of disbelief in his eyes. “What kind of trick are you pulling on me? You remind me of the Growl promotions.”

 

“Isn’t it the Growl promotions?” he says without thinking. The other shakes his head, a little slowly, trying to process everything Junmyeon’s saying. ‘Minseok’ stares quietly, deep in thought.

 

“What day was it yesterday?”

 

“August fourth,” he answers. “Twenty thirteen.”

 

‘Minseok’ looks up thoughtfully, looking slightly attractive with the way his face scrunches up from his thinking. Then Junmyeon stares, and thinks, if this really is Minseok, how did he come from being cute to being, well, too hot for him to handle? The dark, straightened hair also has him screaming a little too loudly on the inside.

 

‘Minseok’ pulls his shirt down, and Junmyeon blushes after realizing he hasn’t pulled it down. “Do you know me?” Junmyeon shakes his head. “I’m Minseok. Minseok, but in twenty eighteen.”

 

“Twenty eighteen?” Five years in the _future?_ That’s impossible.

 

Minseok just nods, watching the younger male—the much younger male—and waiting for his reaction. So this is Minseok in twenty eighteen. Twenty nine, while Junmyeon’s still twenty three. He’s grown out of his cute, chubby cheeks and while they were still a little plump, it wasn’t like the Minseok he knows, but somehow, he feels safe, even if he’s seen that Minseok less than five minutes ago, even if this isn’t the Minseok he’s supposed to be seeing, even if this isn’t the time he’s supposed to be living in.

 

Minseok’s distracted by another thought. He and Junmyeon got together later on in November of that year, so the boy must’ve been surprised when Minseok suddenly manhandled him like that. He wants to apologize, but gets distracted at the youthful look of Junmyeon’s face. While, yes, the Junmyeon now was just as beautiful as the one he first fell in love with, he can’t help but feel nostalgic, remembering when he and Junmyeon pounced around each other, too scared to confess to one another, too shy to start anything. It didn’t help that there was still EXO-K and EXO-M. There was still Yifan (and Lu Han and Zitao).

 

“I’m sorry,” he starts. “For being so touchy, it’s just—well,” should he continue? Will it change anything in the past? “We get closer in the future.”

 

Junmyeon still looks lost. “We call each other babe in the future?”

 

There’s a resounding _fuck,_ in Minseok’s mind. “Yeah—yeah. That close.”

 

“You kiss my neck a lot in the future?” Junmyeon looks accusative, as if he’s connecting two and two together and finally realizing. “Minseok, don’t play games.”

 

“But I’m not,” he tries to sound as convincing as he could, but Junmyeon just looks at him intently, eyebrows furrowing, as if telling him, ordering him to tell him the truth. Back then, he would’ve been a little scared, but knowing how _young_ this Junmyeon is compared to him, it just ends up being cute. But he doesn’t want to patronize the younger just because he’s six years younger than him now, so he sighs, pulls Junmyeon closer, encasing him in a hug.

 

“I love you,” he says. “And you love me.”

 


	11. Bickering

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minseok and Junmyeon are a divorced couple who meet in a bar.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> is it obvious that i have a thing for drunk divorced xiuho
> 
> also this has a huge possibility of being deleted and ending up in a larger fic that i'll actually finish like yeah i know right i'm surprised too

“You still have that ugly ass orange tie?” Junmyeon sneers, nose scrunching up as if orange were synonymous to rotten flesh. Minseok’s mouth opens, eyes narrowing, offended beyond belief. He glances down at his tie and caresses it gently, shushing it, telling it not to cry. Yixing assumes that the alcohol just kicked in—if Minseok acted like this on the daily he’d understand why Junmyeon and he divorced.

 

“Listen,” Minseok slurs, finger attempting to point at his ex but instead pointing to the empty space to his left. “Yuck fou.”

 

Yixing glances at Jongdae, seeing his amused grin, like he’s seen this way too many times to count. The younger turns to him, saying something drowned out by the music. Yixing comes closer (Jongdae’s breathing on him now holy shit) and beckons him to repeat. “They’re still in love.”

 

“Pretty obvious,” he says, taking another sip of his cocktail. He debates whether to record the ex couple bickering, wondering if it would go viral on social media.

 

“At least the bed is cleaner without you!” Minseok emphasizes on the you, hmph-ing right after he ends his sentence. He falls back down on the backrest, crossing his arms and pouting like a child. 

 

“It got dirty because of the fucking sex we had every single fucking day,” Junmyeon takes another shot, slamming the glass on the table. “Pretty sure you haven’t gotten laid since we divorced.”

 

“Okay listen, girls and guys used to jump on my dick without a second thought. It’s _you_ who made my fucking dick cripple up because of how tight your ass is.”

 

Yixing and Jongdae cover their ears.

 


	12. Boy Problems

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Minseok is suddenly interesting.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a chatfic that has been rotting in my basement for months
> 
> notes:  
> \- chanbaek and sekai are dating  
> \- everyone except junmyeon is in the chat, but only minseok, luhan, baekhyun, chanyeol, kyungsoo, jongin, and sehun talk in this one  
> \- there was a chatfic that inspired me for this one but as someone who never wrote a chatfic before it does not live up to it

**Yeolchan**

Hey guys

 

 

**Minseok**

No

 

 

**Yeolchan**

But I haven’t even started what i was gonna say wtf

 

 

**Beak**

Yeah but everything you say is just like your nickname

Cringey and annoying

 

 

**Yeolchan**

???

How can a nickname be annoying

 

 

**Minseok**

Kinda just works like that if it’s you i guess

 

 

**Lahun**

A roast session at 2 am i’m interested

 

 

**Yeolchan**

I could say plenty of things about you Lahun

 

 

**Lahun**

Whos lahun

Wait

WHO THE FUCK

 

 

**Suhen**

Lol

Wait wtf me too

 

 

**Soo**

Man this is interesting.

Nicknames just as ridiculous as the person themselves.

 

 

**Minseok**

Lol just as boring as them too

 

 

**Lahun**

Are you trying to

Uh nevermind

 

 

**Suhen**

Boring as Minseok might be i have something juicy about him

 

 

**Beak**

Lmao something juicy about minseok??

Oxymoron

 

 

**Suhen**

I’m being serious tho???

Minseok hyung was hiding something from us all along

 

 

**Minseok**

What

 

 

**Suhen**

A lil birdie told me that Minseok was on a date

Not really a little birdie

I have a big birdie

I was the birdie

I saw Minseok on a date with this dude

 

 

**Soo**

Who?

 

 

**Yeolchan**

Even Kyungsoo’s interested

Go on

Minseok who is this mystery person

 

 

**Minseok**

Oh

It wasn’t a date wtf it was just my best friend

Junmyeon

 

 

**Beak**

Foiled again

 

 

**Lahun**

Best friend??

What kind of LIE is slipping out of your lips kim minseok

Ur best friend is right here?????/

 

 

**Minseok**

I have never met a person who considers being roommates being best friends

Until you came

 

 

**Beak**

Rip roommate zoned

How’re you feelin

 

 

**Lahun**

I have never even HEARD of that junmyeon guy

Besides like i hang out with u 24/7 it’s kind of a silent agreement that we’re bffs????

 

 

**Minseok**

You have never HEARD of ‘that junmyeon guy’ because you never fucking listen to me when i’m talking???

So even if you do hang out with me 24/7 your presence of mind is always on yifan this yifan that

 

 

**Suhen**

Damn is something burning

 

 

**_[Lahun removed Suhen from the group]_ **

 

 

**Lahun**

Anyfuckingway

 

 

**Yeolchan**

Lol are you ashamed because its all true

 

 

**Lahun**

Keep your dick in your panties park

 

 

**Yeolchan**

Oh woe is me

 

 

**Beak**

But now i’m interested

Who is this junmyeon guy

Why haven’t WE heard of him??

 

 

**Minseok**

Idk? He never really got brought up in our conversations i guess

Besides i was planning on introducing him to u guys next friday anyway

 

 

**Yeolchan**

Oh this is interesting

Is this some kind of meeting the parents kind of vibe

Is junmyeon the enigmatic bad boy 

The weird nerd

Something completely different

 

 

**_[Beak added Suhen to the group]_ **

 

 

**Beak**

What does this junmyeon look like sehun

 

 

**Suhen**

Kinda cute

Jk hella cute

 

 

**Jongout**

Um what

 

 

**Suhen**

Not as cute as u sweetie

 

 

**Jongout**

That’s what i thought >:|

 

 

**Yeolchan**

Yuck get your emoticon using ass outta this chat

 

 

**Jongout**

And get your weeb pussy out of this country thanks

 

 

**_[Yeolchan removed Jongout from the chat]_ **

 

 

**Lahun**

Oh is junmyeon single

 

 

**Minseok**

Why do you need to know

 

 

**Suhen**

Juicy

 

 

**Yeolchan**

I feel the tea in my veins

 

 

**Minseok**

How can u conclude that from just me asking?? Why he needed to know???

Junmyeon is single

 

 

**Beak**

Aggressive

Maybe Minseok wants to remove that title

Yknow

;)

 

 

**Minseok**

Shut

The fuck up

Yknow

;)

 

 

**Lahun**

Minseoks getting all worked up

You never got worked up over me

Our friendship

Our BEST friendship

Its falling apart

Because of this HOMEWRECKER

 

 

**Minseok**

What got stuck up your ass luhan

If anyone’s the homewrecker its you???

Junmyeon and I were best friends since i learned my first words

 

 

**_[Lahun left the chat]_ **

 

 

**Beak**

KLJFHSDFKJSH

 

 

**Yeolchan**

This is interesting

I wonder what minseoks first words were

;)))))))))))))

 

 

**Beak**

‘Jump on this dick’

 

 

**Minseok**

One more ‘this is interesting’ and i am actually going to kick you

Also those were two different scenarios have you ever heard of a metaphor

Have your last two brain cells given up on you

 

 

**Suhen**

Minseoks so mean

I think he’s got some boy problems

 

 

**Minseok**

Or maybe it’s bc all of you have been messaging me about this

At 2 in the morning

And I just want to sleep

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> poor pcy just wanted to talk about an anime he watched


	13. Kisses

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two completely different takes on a kiss.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> unrelated drabbles!! canon au sort of not really?? if the country wasn't that homophobic then maybe yes i'm so high it's like 3 am

Junmyeon presses a kiss to his boyfriend’s lips, shy and inexperienced. He hadn’t kissed before, stating it on so many interviews, so Minseok was extra gentle when it came to it. They were always short, never lasting longer than a few seconds, and it was okay for him. He’s pecked him boldly a few times during shows together, and it only serves to show that the kid was proud of their relationship. After knowing him for so long, he knows that it wasn’t just him showing off—even if it always did look like that.

 

“Your lips are softer than mine,” he comments in his stuffy Korean, nose blocked from the cold weather. “Unfair. You’re just more attractive than me.”

 

“But you’re smarter than me,” Minseok is quick to throw back, cupping the younger’s cheeks, keeping him from moving too far away from his lips as he presses more kisses onto his face. “A lot cuter, not to mention an amazing singer.”

 

Junmyeon flushes, face radiating a little hotter than just a moment ago. “You flatter me too much.”

 

“I flatter you just enough,” Minseok gives him a sloppy kiss, slick with saliva but Junmyeon takes it with a smile. “I love you so much.”

 

 

~

 

 

It comes to him quickly. Quick, he can compare to a passing breeze, barely noticable but it was there. Junmyeon's lips were on top of his, touching, but not quite a kiss. Minseok doesn't try to push the younger, only kissing still, hands coming up to wrap around Junmyeon's waist.

Then it isn't a breeze, it was there--solid, existent, telling him that it wasn't an illusion.

 

Junmyeon moves away, a small frown on his face as he pushes Minseok's hands away from him, settling on the other side of the couch.

 

"I like you," he says, so quietly that Minseok wasn't very sure if he was supposed to hear it. But by the way Junmyeon looks up at him, eyes scrunched as if he was waiting for some sort of pain to arrive. For rejection.

 

"I never meant to," he laughs to himself. "But I guess I couldn't help it," he looks at Minseok with a more confident gaze, but one that was shaky, as if he was ready to break. "I like you."


	14. Do you still love me?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this was supposed to make me have happy feelings on the inside but i just ended up crying because gosh darn why can't i have a boyfriend

“Do you still love me?” Junmyeon shuffles a little, moving closer as his boyfriend pulls the laundry out from the washing machine.

 

“Yes,” Minseok responds simply, shutting the glass cover and standing up to leave the laundry room. Junmyeon follows on his knees, like a little dog following his owner. The wooden floor scrapes against his knees, and he stands up to continue following him.

 

Minseok is hanging the clothes by the balcony, muscles visible from his bare back as he pins the clothes onto the hanger, just beside the back of the air conditioner jutting out of the wall. Junmyeon sits down on the floor again and bumps his head on Minseok’s leg.

 

“Even if I don’t do laundry?”

 

“Yes,” Minseok enters the apartment again and Junmyeon follows.

 

Now he’s wrapping an apron around his torso, getting ready to cook them lunch. Junmyeon stands beside him as he ties the apron.

 

“Will you love me even if I don’t help you tie your apron?”

 

“Yes,” Minseok says, and pulls out a pan, a knife, and a cutting board. He places the pot on the stove and goes to the fridge to take out some veggies.

 

He turns to him. “Can you set up the table?”

 

“Will you still love me if I say no?” Junmyeon’s eyes sparkle when Minseok sighs and says yes anyway. He ends up setting the table anyway, neatly setting down the plates and utensils. He wanders back to his boyfriend, who was in the middle of dicing a carrot. He watches in intrigue as Minseok pulls out some more vegetables to chop.

 

“Will you still love me if I refuse to eat the vegetables?”

 

“Yes,” Minseok stops cutting and glances at the younger. “Do you want anything else? We have some—“

 

“I’ll eat it,” Junmyeon reddens, and Minseok chuckles and goes back to chopping some more vegetables.

 

Junmyeon sits in their living room, watching television until Minseok calls him to the table. His apron’s off, and Junmyeon ogles at his bare abs as he sits down. Minseok smiles and ruffles his hair, chiding at him to eat instead of drooling.

 

Junmyeon pokes at the rice on his plate, perfectly made as always. Junmyeon always loved sticky rice, the very variety that Minseok absolutely hates, but still eats anyway. He asks him if he loved him any less after declaring sticky rice as the official house rice, and Minseok says no.

 

He really loves his boyfriend.

 

“Would you still love me if I stopped loving you?” This time he turns to Minseok, watching the inquisitive look in his eyes, eyebrows raised. Junmyeon was about to add in that it was just a question, and that he was definitely still in love with Minseok but the elder had already responded.

 

“Always,” he smiles, sure of his answer. Then he frowns, head tilting as his hand inches closer to take Junmyeon’s.

  
“Why? Do you still love me?” He’s tense, shoulders raised, throat bobbing slightly.

 

“Yes.”


	15. There Are Many Things That Shine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> (look for what's real.)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello this is to make up for the drought in the xiuho tag (and xiuho in general) but also bc i love my mom sara

Junmyeon’s breathing is too loud and the night is too cold.

 

Minseok holds his dear close to him, trying to feel the heartbeat under his fingertips and the mercury on his skin. And Junmyeon’s eyes were a pale white but he was beautiful, more beautiful than the stars that barely twinkle in them. He kisses his lover’s pale lips.

 

“I love you,” he says, and leaves Junmyeon on the ground.

 

~

 

Junmyeon was colorful. He had red cheeks and sometimes the tips of his fingers become blue. He was gold under the sunlight and was pink when he was embarrassed. Sometimes Minseok would paint on him a stripe of purple. Purple was Junmyeon’s favourite color, so why does he hate the purple on his skin?

 

(Was it the black that comes afterwards? The black that taints his beautiful white skin? Different from his platinum hair and pearly white teeth?)

 

Junmyeon was bright. Junmyeon was too bright.

 

And Minseok was dark. Minseok was dark and ugly but Junmyeon had loved him, and became a muted grey.

 

~

 

Minseok laughs and hopes Junmyeon hears it.

 

He holds his hand while reading him a story. He keeps note of his pauses, his intonations, the way the emotions leave his lips and draft around the room. It’s a lovely book, with a red cover that simply says Junmyeon. So of course he knows the story, knows it so well he doesn’t actually need to look at it. He even read this to all their friends before, in a beautiful field.

 

Minseok looks at Junmyeon’s hand, smaller, bonier. He wonder if he had been eating lately and promises to make him dinner. For the meantime, he shoves the book down Junmyeon’s throat and kisses his cheek.

 

He leaves and tells Junmyeon that he loves him.

 

~

 

“How are you?” was Jongdae’s first question after coming over. How insensitive. Minseok was as happy as ever.

 

In his hands were a bouquet of posies, and one already seems to be wilting. Jongdae must’ve waited a bit before visiting.

 

Now he’s babbling about his day, not wanting there to be silence between the two of them. It was awkward. Pushed. Forced. Like,It had been, scripted and Jongdae was a— terrible actor. And Minseok. He continues to listen.

 

“I know it’s hard especially since you two fought,” Jongdae says and Minseok drifts away from the conversation. Then he notices something.

 

There also seems to be some posies in his pocket. They burn to the touch.  
  
~

 

Junmyeon doesn’t like it when it hurts. Doesn’t like coughing and feeling the clinching pain in his chest.

 

Minseok doesn’t like it when Junmyeon cries. Doesn’t like the color of his transparent tears and tries painting them with red. But Junmyeon cries even more and Minseok isn’t sure what to do anymore. He itches at his head, at a spot that was itchy, itchy, itchy, until it bleeds and there’s red on his fingertips.

 

And Minseok blinks and Junmyeon’s surrounded by posies.

 

Junmyeon was an array of colors, some vivid, some softened, some in between, but the most beautiful color on him had always been purple.

 

(That was why the most brilliant mark had always been the purple around his neck.)

 

~

 

Minseok takes some time off to spend time with Junmyeon.

 

Junmyeon’s been sick lately, that’s why he hasn’t been able to go to work. Minseok supposes it’s fine, he’s enough to support the two of them. Junmyeon could quit work and Minseok can spoil him like a prince if he let him.

 

Junmyeon’s still in bed, still eating his book and Minseok coos and hugs him a little tighter. He takes the book out of his mouth and kisses his cheek, but it burns his lips. Feels maggots between his teeth and spits them out.

 

“How dirty,” Junmyeon scolds him, and he looks up to see Junmyeon’s frown and brown eyes scolding him. Minseok blinks and blinks, he’s so happy. He doesn’t know why he’s so happy. Even with Junmyeon repeating the same phrase over and over again that the words have lost its meaning, Minseok is happy.

 

But then Junmyeon’s words become screeches, like tires against asphalt, and it’s scratchy in Minseok’s ears. What had been a soft melody had turned into a cacophony of screeching, blaring noise only echoing against the walls and it repeats and repeats and repeats and spills out of Junmyeon’s crusted purple lips and Minseok breaks him, breaks the ever-repeating record with fist against flesh.

 

And it’s peaceful again.

 

~

 

Jongdae shows Minseok his grave, one day.

 

It’s simple, a gravestone laid flat on the top of the elevated Earth. It was Junmyeon’s. It was Junmyeon.

 

Given, it was actually Jongdae taking Minseok to Junmyeon’s third death anniversary. Minseok had seen the grave many times, really. For the first year he had missed Junmyeon constantly, skips out on his work just to talk to him. Junmyeon always listens. Minseok knows he listens, from the warmth in his chest and the breeze hitting his back as if it were comforting him. Junmyeon had always been there for him.

 

His friends were there for him, too. Were there to buy him food and make him forget sometimes, helps him accept that Junmyeon is gone and never will come back. And to some degree, Minseok had accepted it. Had learned to live with the knowledge that Junmyeon’s final breath had already passed (and it was because of him).

 

So then why is Junmyeon’s body still with him, instead of six feet underground?


End file.
